The city of Mende and its cathedral illustrate episcopal power in the Middle Ages. Bishop Aldebert III of Tournel was the first to recognize King Louis VII of France in 1161. The sovereign issued a Golden Bull, a rather rare royal edict, which gave the bishop sovereign and justice powers over the inhabitants of Gévaudan. Aldebert had ramparts built in Mende to assert his status. The construction of Notre-Dame-et-Saint-Privat Cathedral in 1368 established Mende as a place of worship and increased its prosperity.